Refrigerating apparatus



Dac. 8, 1942. L.. M. KEIGHLEY 4 2,304,411

REFRIGERATING APPARATUS Filed Deo. 22, 1941. 2 Shouts-Shut 2 IN VENTOR.

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. tive Patented Dec. 8,` 1942 `REFRIdiaaA'rINe. APrRA'rUs `LloydviM. Keighley, Dayton, Ohio, assignor to General Motors Corporation, Dayton, Ohio, a

corporation of Delaware l i Application December. 2 2, 1941, .Serial No. 423,917v z claims. (ci. tif-ssi)4 This invention relates to refrigerating apparatus and particularly to household refrigerators.

In present day type household refrigerating apparatus, the cabinet thereof is ordinarilyprovided with a low temperature freezing chamber;

isolated from a higher temperature high rela-` tive humidity chamber, and an auxiliary food storage bin associated with the machine compartment thereof. While this type of refrigerator has been lfavorably accepted by the public, there* are two problems existing in such refrlgerating apparatus. The rst problem is that of preventing occurrence of an over-moist condition in the higher temperatured high relahumidity chamber, which condition jeopardizes proper preservation of foods stored therein. The second problem is that of providing proper ventilation for the interior of the auxiliary food storage bin to prevent foods stored therein from becoming dried out by heat generated by heat dissipating elements of `the refrigerating system associated with the refrigerator and located in the machine compartment thereof. `By my invention, I contemplate the elimination of these problernsin order to provide an improved household refrigerator.

An object Yof my invention is to remove excess condensate from a relatively high humidity food storage chamber of a refrigerator cabinet and to dispose of this condensate water into the at mosphere exteriorly of the refrigerator chamber of the refrigerator cabinet.

Another object of my invention is to provide means for adding moisture to air employed for Ventilating the interior of an auxiliary food storage bin associated with the machine compartment of a refrigerator cabinet to prevent drying out of foods stored in the bin.

In carrying out the foregoing objects, a further and more specific or two-fold object of my invention is to remove condensate water from the high humidityv food storage chamber of a refrigerator cabinet and to utilize this water for increasing the moisture content of air entering an auxiliary food storage bin associated with the machine compartment of the refrigerator to thereby more effectively prevent drying out of foods in the bin.

With the aforesaid objects in mind, the invention will best be understood from the following description\ of the embodiment thereof when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings inwhich; l

Fig. 1` is a vertical sectional view through a refrigeratiiig apparatus having my invention incorporated therein;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional iF/iewlof a` part of th apparatus disclosed in g. i l

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2 showing the storage bin associat'edwith the machine compartment of the refrigerator cabinetin an open position; 'y

Fig.l 4 is a horizontalsectio'nal view taken on the line 4 4 of Fig. lksho'wing apertures in a wall of the storage bili; and

Fig. 5 is a horizontalfragmentary sectional view `'taken on the line 5--5 of Fig. 1 showing apertures in another wall of the storage bin.

In order to illustrate my invention, I have shown a storage bin forming a closure element for the front of a machine compartment of a multi-temperaturen! chamber household re frigerating apparatus of the type disclosed in the R.. K. Miller `Patent 2,228,144, dated .January 7, 1941. My inventionis particularly applicable to apparatus of thetype referred to in u"the patent identified and, whileI may herein only briefly describe such apparatus, a more detailed description thereof may be had by referring to this patent. Referring to the drawings, there is shown in Fig. 1, thereof, a household refrigerating apparatus comprising a cabinetgenerally represented by the reference character i0. Cabinet Il) includes a plurality of metal walls II forming an outer shell or Wall surface of the cabinet and a metal liner mem` ber I2 within the upper portion of the cabinet surrounded by any suitable insulating material I 4 and forming walls of a chamber. An opening providing access to the chamber-is normally` closed by an insulated door structure I5. partition means I6 is disposed horizontally within the cabinet cwarriber and divides same into an upperfd lower food storage chamber I8. has a rubber or theY like gasket I9 extending therearound and cooperating with the upright walls of the cabinet chamber and with the inner surface of door I5 to form a seal between the lood chambers I1 and these chambers from air circulation therebetween. This partition I6 permits different temperatures as well as different humidities to bc maintained in the different chambers, as will be hereinafter described.

The cabinet outer walls II extend downwardly beyond the insulated chambers Il and I8 to enclose or surround a machine compartment-rtf storageV chambergllgand a;

Partition IB I8 and normally isolating 29 and two side walls 8|.

at the bottom of the cabinet. Front wall II of compartment 2|V has an opening 22 therein (see Fig. 4) and the back wall of the compartment is provided with an aperture 23. Other walls I I of cabinet Il) close the sides of the machine compartment 2| and this compartment is closed at its bottom by the door upon which the refrigerator rests. In the present disclosure, a foodstorage bin-like element, represented as a whole by the reference character 25, is plvotally mounted by a hinge or hinges 26 upon the front wall II of the cabinet I 0. Bin-like element 25 'commises a front wall 21, a back wall 28, 'a bottom wall (See Fig. 4.) bin 25 is mounted so thatits front portion projects outwardly beyond the front wall Ii of cabinet ID and is provided with a handle orv knob 32 for facilitating tilting thereof about its hinged 7 mounting. Bin element 25 forms a cover or closure means ior the opening 22 in the front wall of machine compartment 2| of the refrigerator I0, A peg or the like 33, secured to the underside oi the bottom insulated cabinet Wall, forms a stop for the inward movement of bin 25. A. bracketv 34 may be secured to the front portion The connected with a sealed motor-compressor unit 54 located in compartment 2| by a. gaseous refrigerant return conduit 55. `Refrigerant evaporated within evaporator I to cool the interior of chamber I1 isdrawn into the compressor unit 54 where it is compressed and forwarded under pressure through pipe 56 into the condenser 53.

' 'I'he refrigerant is cooled and liqu'eed in conevaporator 5|.

of compartment 2| and disposed in the pathof the outward movement of the back wall 28 of the bin so as to prevent tilting of the bin too far outwardly beyond the front of the cabinet. The front wall 21 of bin 25 is normally disposed substantially in the same vertical plane with the outer face oi' door I5 and the open top of the bin, or at least that portion of its top which projects outwardly beyond the cabinet front wall, is substantially concealed by the lower edge of door I5. A plurality of spaced apart apertures 36 are provided in the back wall r28 of the bin element 25 (see Fig. 5). This back wall 280i the bin isv also provided with a depressed portion forming a trough 31 along the inner surface thereof, whichv trough has a`funnel-like upper part 38.

lage bin 25. Air enters the bin 25 through the openings 46 vand iiows outwardly Vthereof into machine compartment 2| by way of the apertures 36. Some air which enters the bin 25 may :Iiow upwardly therein and Voutwardly thereof to a point exteriorly of cabinet I0 by, way of the open top portion. of the bin which projects beyond the front wall of the cabinet. 'I'he air leaving the bin 25 and entering the compartment 2| flows over the motor-compressor unit and over the condenser 53 in its passage outwardly of the compartmentv through aperture 23 tov cool these heat dissipating elements.

A closed secondary refrigerating system or circuit-associated with cabinet I0 comprises a refrigerant condensing portion' in the form of a' conduit 6 I secured in intimate thermal contact with the bottom wall of the primary evaporator 5|. The secondary circuit also comprises a refrigerant evaporating portion in the form of The bottom of the food chamber I8v -or the bottom wall 39 oi' liner member I2 `is sloped toward a drain pipe 4I having its lower end 42 terminating above 4the funnel-like part 38 on the back wall 28 of bin element 25. The bottom of bin 25 has a plurality of elongated openings 46 therein bounded by flanged portions 41 which extend upwardly from the bottom wall 29 thereof. Flanges 41 provide dams about the openings 46 for retaining water adapted to be received in the bin 25 in the manner and for the purpose to be hereinafter described. A wick member 48 is disposed over the openings 46 in the bottom wall 28' of binA 25 and' rests upon the tops of the iianges 41 with its edge portions depending into contact with the wall 29. A screen 419 is mounted in any suitable manner within the bin' element 25 for supporting food products adapted to be placed in thel bin in spaced relation to the wick 48. Wick 48 is adapted to draw water from the bottom of the bin and convey vthis water directly over the openings 46 and into the path of air entering the bin. Since air must iiow through the wick 48, this wick must berather porous and yet of suiilcient density to draw water upwardly by capillary attraction.

In order to cool the upper food storage chamber I1 to a low temperature, an evaporator 5I of any desirable construction or design and preferably of the sheet metal variety is mounted therein. I'his evaporator is connected by a liquid refrigerant supply conduit 52 with a condenser 53, mounted within the aperture 23 in the back wall of machine compartment 2|, and is conduit 62 having loops thereof extending over and secured to the upright walls of food chamber I8. The evaporator 5I of the primary refrigerating system may bel maintained at an average temperature of 15 to 20 F. to maintain the air within chamber I1 at a low relative humidity for the preservation of certain food products. The amount of conduit 6I in contact with the primary evaporator 5I is predetermined, so that the evaporating portion of the secondary refrigerating circuit is maintained at approximately 35 F. to cool the Walls of chamber I8 in the neighborhood of 37 F.

In the use of a' refrigerator of the type-disclosed, the apparatus functions to normally maintain a predetermined high relative humidity in the high temperature food chamber I8. However, during the storage of certain types of food Within chamber I8, or due to the refrigerator being located in a climate where the air is of a very high relative humidity, normal leakage of air into chamber I 8, or frequent opening and closing of door I5 causes moisture to condense out of the air within chamber I8 by the cooling of same. This creates an over-moist condition within the high temperature chamber I8, and u nder such a condition some of the condensate must be removed therefrom to provide for proper refrigeration of foods within this chamber. Heretofore, others have provided means for placing the high humidity chamber I8 in communication with l the low humidity chamber I1 in order that the'excessive moisture in chamber I8 will be removed therefrom and collected upon walls of thelow temperature evaporator I in the form oi' frost or ice. This necessitates too frequent defrosting periods of levaporator 5| and is not therefore. entirely satisfactory. In the present disclosure, the excessive moisture within chamber I8 mayflow into the drain pipe 4i whereupon itis directed onto the funnel--lilre top portion 3B of the back wall 28 of the bin 25. This -excess moisture flows down the trough 31 formed in the back wall of bin 25 into the bottom of the bin. The condensate water is retained in the bin or is prevented from owing outwardly thereof through the openings 46 in its bottom wall 29 by the Ilanges or` dams .41 about the openings 45. Wick member 48 dependsinto the water contained in.

the bottom of bin 25 and therefore the wick draws the water by capillary attraction upwardly over the openings 46 to thereby convey the water directly into the path of air adapted to enter the bin through the openings 46. The air employed 'to ventilate the interior'of bin 25 and to cool the motor-compressor unit 454 and con- ,denser 53 lis taken from the room in which the refrigerator is located and this air is usually dry. Thus, this'air'is not entirely satisfactory for preventing a reserve supply of food products stored within the storage bln 25 from being dried out by heat generated 'by the motorcompressor unit 54 and condenser- 53 located within compartment 2l. I therefore augment `employed'vfor Ventilating a food storage bin, as

disclosed, prevents drying out of the foods to thereby permit a reserve supply of foods to be satisfactorily stored in the bin over a considerable length of time. By my invention. I have veliminated the problem of disposing of excess condensate from the 'high temperature and high `relative humidity refrigerated chamber of a twotemperatured refrigerating apparatus while at thesame time employing the condensate to perform a benecial result in conjunction with the Vuse of the apparatus. A

While the form -of embodiment of the invention, as herein disclosed, constitutes a preferred form, it is to be understood that other forms l might be adopted, all coming within the sco ofl the claims which follow.

Whatis claimed is as follows: 1. In refrigerating apparatus, the combination orwalls deilning a structure providedwith first and second zones to. be refrigerated and a comf partment beyond 'said zones, means for cooling the air to said iirst zone to a low temperature, means for cooling the air in the second zone to a temperature higher than the temperature of said iirst zone whereby moisture condenses out of the airwithin said second zoneyone wall of said compartment having lan opening "therein, cover means for the openingin said one compartment wall, said cover means comprising a bin-like element having openingmeans therein the ventilation of the. interior of bin 25 by uti- I lizing the condensate from the lrefrigerated chamber Il for Aadding moisture to air circu lating through the storage bin. Consequently, air circulating into the storage bin through openings 48 has moisture added thereto upon passing through the saturated wick 48, and this method of increasing the moisture content of the Ventilating air insures better preservation oi the reserve supply of food products stored in the bin 25. For example, potatoes, beets, turnips, onions, apples, pearsand other food prodto permit air tocirculate into and out of said element for .Ventilating the interior thereof. and means for conveying the condensate from the air in said second zone into the path of air en- I tering said element to add moisture thereto.

ucts placed in the storage bin 25 are prevented from being dried out by heat generated by the heat dissipating elements of the refrigerating system located in compartment!! and bythe circulation of dry air through the-bin since the Ventilating air in the present disclosure is laden with moisture before-it iiows over and around such food products in the bin.

From the foregoing, it will be apparent that lI -have provided a novel method of Ventilating v in said compartment operatively' connected with one of said cooling means, one wall of said com- 2.' In refrigerating apparatus, the combination v of '.walls defining a 'structure provided with tlrst and second zones to be'refrigerated and a compartment 'beyond said zones, means-for cooling the air in said first zone .to alow temperature, means for cooling the ahi-in the second zone to a temperature higher than the temperature of said first zone whereby moisture condenses 'out ofthe air within said second zone. .-a heat dissipating Amember o f a refrigerating system partment having an aperture therein and another wall thereof having an opening therein,`

cover means for the opening in the second mentioned compartment wall, said cover means comprising'a bin-like element having opening means therein whereby air may circulate through said element into said compartment and outwardly of the compartmentthrough the aperture vin its one wall for Ventilating the interior of said element and for cooling said member, and means for conveying the condensate from Ythe air in said second zone into the path of air entering said element to add moisture thereto. 

